Travel – Dilmuni Couplehttp://www.dilmunicouple.com
Travel blog by storytellers, adventurers and photographers Hussain Almosawi and Mariam Alarab; stories, photos and videos to help others turn their travels into life changing experiences.Sat, 30 Apr 2016 10:47:13 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=5.0.365452602Walking around Bahrain | Day 4http://www.dilmunicouple.com/walking-around-bahrain-day-4/
http://www.dilmunicouple.com/walking-around-bahrain-day-4/#commentsMon, 14 Sep 2015 11:13:25 +0000http://www.dilmunicouple.com/?p=2053It is the morning of the 4th day from our walking trip around Bahrain. Today is Friday not same as the other days this morning, I am so excited for today route. We are heading to Manama the capital! Then we’ll continue walking along the northern west coastline that connects several villages. [Note: This is ...

]]>It is the morning of the 4th day from our walking trip around Bahrain. Today is Friday not same as the other days this morning, I am so excited for today route. We are heading to Manama the capital! Then we’ll continue walking along the northern west coastline that connects several villages.

[Note: This is day IV of a 5-days story of our walking trip around Bahrain. To read Day 1 click here.]

From Muharraq to Manama

From Muharraq island we went through the old bridge connecting Muharraq to Manama. Again we found ourselves walking on the fast highway and hoping that our country will become more walking friendly in the future. We reached Manama, passed the closed house of Quran museum a place that hosts old copies of Quran. Finally we are here in Ras Rumman a small town within Manama. What I really find impressive about this little town that it’s still preserving its local culture and architecture in mid of the high skyscrapers, modern hotels and buildings surrounding it.

After Ras Rumman we went to a Al-Fadhel neighbourhood, which is one of the oldest neighbourhoods in Manama. It’s famous for its mosque that has a very colourful minaret. There are also a number of old houses with traditional architecture all of them are abandoned and locked. Unfortunately there are not much efforts to restore those old houses in Manama. Al-Fadhel neighbourhood is a very special place to Hussain, as it is his father’s hometown.

My sister had called me earlier and we agreed to meet her and a group of friends at “Mandali” one of a traditional restaurants in the heart of Manama Souq. So we went through the narrow allies in Manama. The old area of Manama Souq and around currently hosts thousands of expats from different nationalities mostly from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Filipino, so it became a cross cultural place, you can even smell the indian dishes while you are moving between the houses. Our breakfast meal included grilled chicken liver, grilled kabab, Nashef “Which is a chicken and tomato sauce”. So yes we like to go heavy with breakfast in Bahrain! actually me and Hussain don’t normally have this at home but this is what you can get from Mandali early morning breakfast. however, the meal was a perfect power charger to complete the walk for today.

Manama Souq

We finished our breakfast meal and decided to have a small tour around Manama Souq. First we passed by a traditional coffee shop. In the outdoor area of the coffee shop, you can see the tall wooden chairs put next to each other with tables in front. We couldn’t resist so we had a seat ordered red tea and Chai Karak. It so obvious that the most the attendants are of old age a typical place to spend a good time. It is very old coffee shop, they are even serving “Qado” similar to Sheesha it is used to smoke tobacco but the very special thing about it that the bottom pot is made of pottery locally here in Bahrain. We finished our tea and continue our tour around the Souq, we passed by a traditional tailor shop, the famous and most photogenic tailor in the Souq Haji Fatahllah.

After crossing spices and traditional sweet shops. We have been attracted by a very hard noise, here we are in front of the last local blacksmith shop in Bahrain. Haji Habib with a gentle smile working on forming a tin box. Hanged in the shop’s wall a very nice portrait of his father who taught him the know how of this handicraft. There many other things, coffee jugs, pots and bowls, but my favorite is the big tin boxes. The Souq has a lot but we have to leave now to reach Diraz village where we are going to camp today.

Emmawash traditional restaurant

The second invitation of today was from Emawash traditional restaurant so it was our next stop. The restaurant is in Budaiya highway, specifically in Shakhoorah village. We met Abullah the owner and his wife Sarah, more friends and people joined us later. Ali our dear friend took us to his house to have a shower! take a rest and drive us back to Bahrain fort to continue from there through Nakheel highway.

Al Nakheel highway

If you just walked behind Bahrain fort you will reach the fort village and from there through the farms road you can continue to the other villages along the coastline. Someone called and asked to meet us in the intersection between Meqsha’a and Karana so we waited. Mahmood Al-Baqlawa came and said I won’t take long, this is for you! a very nice gift from a person we just met. A trophy made out of bronze taking a shape of an old Dilmun seal. Such a perfect gift for the Dilmuni couple!

With very positive feelings we continued the walk passed through the villages of; Karranah, Jid Alhaj, Jannusan and Barbar. What we you see when pass through those villages is mixture of old, modern and traditions that people kept until today. Luckily there still some farms in this fertile part of the island. Fish and vegetables, local snack sellers set on the sides of the roads. Adding to this scenery horses and white donkeys riders!

Finally we reached Diraz village. We enjoyed the night with number of friends and relatives at Abu Subeh beach, before heading to my manager house. Carla generously invited us to set up our tent in her house’s small garden. oh It is such a pleasure to have our tent in a calm and beautiful place as this. We will have a calm night for sure! One last thing finishing the surprises of today, at 02:00 am the garden showers started automatically so we had to wake up mid of the night and change our tent location! what a day it was.

]]>http://www.dilmunicouple.com/walking-around-bahrain-day-4/feed/12053Jidhafs Market, Shopping like a local!http://www.dilmunicouple.com/jidhafs-market-shopping-like-a-local/
http://www.dilmunicouple.com/jidhafs-market-shopping-like-a-local/#commentsWed, 26 Aug 2015 09:55:12 +0000http://www.dilmunicouple.com/?p=1945While traveling, we always like visiting local markets. It is different place and one of the easy ways to meet people in a friendly context, and get insight into local food and culture. In our homeland; Bahrain, Jidhafs Market is one of the most authentic local markets, you can find locals selling and buying fruits, vegetables, ...

]]>While traveling, we always like visiting local markets. It is different place and one of the easy ways to meet people in a friendly context, and get insight into local food and culture. In our homeland; Bahrain, Jidhafs Market is one of the most authentic local markets, you can find locals selling and buying fruits, vegetables, fish, meat, and many other products.

Jidhafs market is one of the 5 local spots to visit in Bahrain, the market charm lies in its atmosphere. Busy, friendly stallholders that love to be photographed and chat with people. early visitors can enjoy simple breakfast in the local coffee shop located in the center of the market.

The benefits of a visit to this local market are twofold: a place where you can enjoy not only a soulful fresh products, but also support local farmers and fishermen.

This local market also is the location of the famous short film “Central Market” which toured a number of prodigious film festivals around the world and won different awards. the film is about a boy who works his afternoons at the local market carrying groceries and delivering produce and is always searching for that quick buck to be made. He finds his opportunity to make some ‘serious cash’ by trying to milk a small goat at a nearby pen.

The video below features our visits and different scenes from Jidhafs market … Enjoy !

]]>http://www.dilmunicouple.com/jidhafs-market-shopping-like-a-local/feed/41945Walking around Bahrain | Day 3http://www.dilmunicouple.com/walking-around-bahrain-day-3/
http://www.dilmunicouple.com/walking-around-bahrain-day-3/#respondTue, 18 Aug 2015 10:51:26 +0000http://www.dilmunicouple.com/?p=1936Every place we passed through during our walking adventure around Bahrain has its own smell. The first day when we camped by Bilaj AIjazaer beach, we could always smell the sea. The morning of the third day we crossed an industrial area in Sitra island, the road was full of big trucks and definitely I ...

]]>Every place we passed through during our walking adventure around Bahrain has its own smell. The first day when we camped by Bilaj AIjazaer beach, we could always smell the sea. The morning of the third day we crossed an industrial area in Sitra island, the road was full of big trucks and definitely I didn’t like the smell but when we went through the residential area, there was one smell that attracted me. It is the smell of the hot bread or as we call it here in Bahrain “Khobez”. This nice smell led me to the local bakery in the area. We stopped by and ordered our favorite snack the special double bread with cheese.

[Note: This is day III of a 5-days story of our walking trip around Bahrain. To read Day 1 click here.]

The people in the villages of Bahrain have very close relationships and where’s everyone knows everyone, so we’ve been directly noticed as an outsiders adding to that I wasn’t wearing the traditional Abaya and we were carrying big backpacks which made us really look odd. Our aim was to reach Sitra fish market, we’ve heard a lot about it but never visit it before. In middle of the road we stopped to take rest. We were setting on the floor and laying our heads to one of the walls when a white small bus passed by and stopped directly in front of us. The bus driver asked “Are you kicked out of the house!?” in strong Sitra village accent. “No we are just taking rest man” Hussain answered. “What”? . Yes we came all the way walking from Sitra mall to here, we are on a walking trip to explore Bahrain in five days. “Yes like I will believe you, get on I will ride you to wherever you want” he insisted. We got in the bus finally, he took us in small tour around Sitra island before reaching Sitra fish market.

At the entrance of the fish market, a group of people set, who you can ask them to clean the fish or shrimps for you the way you want. They were working very fast and very hard and what they earn for cleaning 1 Kg of fish is only 300 Fils which equal to 0.8$. I was surprised when one of them told me that he has been doing this job for 35 years and he started when has was 10 years old only. We really enjoyed talking to all of them they were very nice and welcoming.

We went inside the market, it was very crowded and vivid, one of the fishermen came holding a big pail, everyone took a step back to give him the space to unload what he hold, I could see what’s coming out, big Hammour fishes still half alive, and from here you can really get fresh fish! There are different types of fish, shrimps, crab and many other types of sea food. At the other side of the market you can find some vegetables and in the middle there are small gathering place for old men and other sellers. We wouldn’t leave Sitra without having a sea food meal, we’ve ordered a tasty lunch of spiced fried fish and white rise from a traditional restaurant lays in front of the fish market.

We left Sitra island, heading to Manama, through the bridge connecting Sitra to the mother island. We passed through Sitra corniche, which is a nice place to have walk and watch flamingo and other types of birds. The bridge wasn’t walking friendly at all for sometime we had to walk inline with the fast cars on the highway. We went through Um Al-Hassam, Al-Adliya and Al-Jufair area and from there we went on the bridge connecting it with Muharraq island.

We were walking next to Bahrain national museum when one car stopped for us. This time a nice lady asking to pick us up to wherever we want. I was very tired after a long walk and we wouldn’t mind a ride for few kms; Maram the nice lady who picked us up works at the Arab regional center for world heritage, we had an interesting talk with her about different UNESCO sites in middle east region. Maram dropped us at Muhrraq traditional Souq, we said thanks and bye. In Muhrraq Souq you can find the finest Bahraini traditional Halwa and other sweets, we took a fast tour and head for Al Ghous park, our campsite for tonight, we set up our tent, and take out our camp fire to prepare hot tea for family, friends and other people arriving to our campsite who knew our camping location after we announced in social media.

]]>http://www.dilmunicouple.com/walking-around-bahrain-day-3/feed/019365 Local spots to visit in Bahrainhttp://www.dilmunicouple.com/5-local-spots-to-visit-in-bahrain/
http://www.dilmunicouple.com/5-local-spots-to-visit-in-bahrain/#commentsMon, 10 Aug 2015 18:14:11 +0000http://www.dilmunicouple.com/?p=1929People always ask us, “what is the best thing about Bahrain !?” and our answer without hesitation “The friendliness, kindness and warmth of its people and the simplicity around in this island”. In 2013, The day next to our wedding day, we decided to have a local tour to enjoy our time together. We drove ...

]]>People always ask us, “what is the best thing about Bahrain !?” and our answer without hesitation “The friendliness, kindness and warmth of its people and the simplicity around in this island”.

In 2013, The day next to our wedding day, we decided to have a local tour to enjoy our time together. We drove the car from Malikya to Jannusan and started wandering around, exploring some green spots in this lovely part of the island. When we posted the photos on Instagram, our friends thought that we are out of Bahrain already, but it was just some neighbourhoods in Jannusan. We didn’t travel far away but we had unforgettable moments that day!

Two years later, we went on a walking adventure around Bahrain, we walked for five days and camped every night in a different location to explore our own country! After that we started to take people on local tours around Bahrain. So in this post we would like to share with you several local spots to visit in Bahrain, in which we think you can learn about Bahrain and its people!

1. Emmawash Traditional Resturant

Balaleet, Qaymat, Scramble egg, Chicken liver, Khobez and Chai Karak.

Our favourite place for an early traditional Bahraini breakfast. the Balaleet (Sweeten spaghetti with egg), Gaimat (Doughnuts with date syrup), chicken livers and the fresh Khobez (bread) must be in your order, and it’s not only the food but the atmosphere in this small restaurant that we really like. We love the doodles and different signatures by people on the walls. You have the option to have your breakfast on a dinning table or as we do at home, sitting on the floor. We try to go early morning during the weekends before 9am to book a place as it gets very busy and full after that. Abdullah Al-Aradi, the owner of the restaurant is always there to make sure that his customers are happy. Sometimes his wife join him and now a new member of the family also frequently attending “baby Zuhoor”. You can also follow their updates via Instagram account.

You can visit the restaurant morning for breakfast: 6:00 am to 1:00 pm and for at night for dinner Dinner : 7:00 pm to 11:00 pm every day. click here to get the directions.

Don’t forget to add your signature before leaving.

2. Jidhafs Market

Fruits and vegetables in Jidhafs market.

We simply enjoy shopping at this local market as many others do. “Fresh” is the title here, You can find fresh vegetables, fish (all types), shrimps, dates and many other things like birds!. What we like more is the friendliness of the sellers, they welcome you with a smile and don’t mind to be photographed or have a chit chat. You can always enjoy shopping like a local!.

Jidhafs market is located at the entrance of Jidhafs city and expands a long the street. Click here to get the directions.

Fish seller holding a fish and smiling to the camera.

3. Bani Jamrah Textile Factory

Mohammed (Left) and Saleh (Right) the two brothers in the workshop before renovation.

The last and only authentic textile weaving factory left in Bahrain. The factory is located in Bani Jammrah village northern west of Bahrain. This village used to have tens of factories in the past with one remaining today. So you will be able to learn about this fading handicraft and try weaving yourself if you would like. This small factory is actually one room and it is also a gathering place for the people in the village, a place to drink tea, enjoy dates and arabic coffee with the vibes of the weaving machines. Anyone will be warmly welcomed. Don’t miss getting one of the colourful handmade shawls for very low price ! you can also follow their updates via Instagram account and support this local handicrafts.

You can visit the place morning time from 08:00 am – 01:00 pm and afternoon 04:00 pm until sunset. click here to get the directions.

Hussain trying to learn how to use the manual weaving machine.

4. Al Nakheel Highway

Street food on the sides of Al-Nakheel highway everyday afternoon.

If you are welling to learn about important aspects of Bahraini villages local culture by only observing or chatting with people, or if you are looking for a local bakery, local vegetables or fish.This is the road you need to go. This road connects number of villages on the northern west coast of Bahrain and it’s one of our best roads ever. It is also a very good road for walking and cycling all the way to Bahrain fort. On this road also there are always a chance to meet horse and donkey riders!

Modern world meets old world in Jannusan village.

5. Al Malkiyah Beach

Fishermen boats near the seashore.

Bahrain’s most popular beach. During weekends it gets very crowded. Fishermen has their own gathering place setting close to their boats. A long the beach families come over to spend the afternoon, some like to enjoy a small boat tour offered by the fishermen for 500 fils/per person. The famous snacks are corn and pop corn. Horses, white donkeys or boys on their motorbikes may accompany your stay at the beach! click here to get the directions.

People enjoying their time in Malikiya beach.

]]>http://www.dilmunicouple.com/5-local-spots-to-visit-in-bahrain/feed/71929Walking around Bahrain – Day 2http://www.dilmunicouple.com/walking-around-bahrain-day-2/
http://www.dilmunicouple.com/walking-around-bahrain-day-2/#commentsTue, 04 Aug 2015 05:03:41 +0000http://www.dilmunicouple.com/?p=1843We waked up next morning, it was too foggy and we didn’t recover yet from tiredness of the previous day. We decided to hitchhike and at least we pass the 20 km to the main street, and yes one car stopped for us, we ran,get into it, they were soldiers who just finished their night ...

]]>We waked up next morning, it was too foggy and we didn’t recover yet from tiredness of the previous day. We decided to hitchhike and at least we pass the 20 km to the main street, and yes one car stopped for us, we ran,get into it, they were soldiers who just finished their night shifts and heading home. At the beginning everyone were silent and I felt they were suspicious about us a Bahraini couple with bags, they didn’t even ask where do you want to go. We decided to break this silence and told them you know what, it sounds weird but we are on a walking journey discovering our own country! one of them got so excited and he said “I would love to something like this, take me with you!” they invited us to have breakfast with them, we thanked them for being nice, giving us a ride to Riffa fort and said goodbye.

[Note: This is day II of a 5-days story of our walking trip around Bahrain. To read Day 1 click here.]

Riffa fort sits on a high hell and from there you can see the urban life all around. The fort dates back to 1812AD and others think the original construction was during the Safavid time. Its importance is related of being home to Bahrain royal family “Al Khalifa” during the 19th century. There are some new things since we lately visited the fort, there is a new restaurant and a new construction which likely to be a museum related to the fort. After touring the fort we went to one of the famous traditional breakfast places in Riffa “Abdulla Alaradi Resturant” we had a meal of Dal, egg and tomato and Karak tea. now we are charged well for killing the kilometres of today and reaching our next camp destination, Sitra mall beach.

We passed through the streets of Riffa, had a small break in front of a small shop, and we attracted the indian guy who was working there as I was setting on the floor in front of the shop. He felt sorry for me and asked me to come inside as it is more cold. we had a little chit chat, He was working in Saudi Arabia and just came to work in Bahrain with lower salary, he expected to get more but as he said “life here is more expensive than Saudi !”.

It is too hot at this time of the day, the sun is too strong and we are heading to a hidden mangroves forest. we crossed Riffa and in the way to Sanad where the forest is. I was asking Hussain is there a real forest! I couldn’t imagine as all what I see is streets and houses. We crossed the highway, some neighbourhoods, big horse stable and private land to reach the forest finally. it is big and very beautiful natural place, but unfortunately it is also a place to throw all the garbage and dead animal bodies! we could see only the front area. And since these trees lives in water, a one need a kayak to go deep inside and see more of the forest. I was reading about the mangroves on our way to it and how it is an important place for birds, birds nests and other type of animals! I couldn’t think how important it is for the ecosystem before reading all about it!

From the mangroves forest to Al Eker village. While we are passing by Al-Eker village we joined some kids who were playing a traditional game and they call it Pingo.The game consists of two teams, the first team should fill the empty bottle with sands, and the other team should target the other team players with the ball to kick them out of the game and prevent them from filling the bottle. The winner is either the team who filled the bottle with sands, or the one who could kicked out all the other team members… Hussain was the first to be kicked out of the game!

We left Al-Eker village with very nice feelings and saying goodbye to our new friends there, continue to the final destination of the day Sitra mall beach! on the way our friend Hussain Alkumaish met us few kilometres before our destination, gave a rescue ride to our campsite! we set up a fire, prepared the tea, my sister arrived also and what’s better than gathering with friends around a fire !

]]>http://www.dilmunicouple.com/walking-around-bahrain-day-2/feed/11843From Doha fire station to Artist in residence!!http://www.dilmunicouple.com/from-doha-fire-station-to-art-in-residence/
http://www.dilmunicouple.com/from-doha-fire-station-to-art-in-residence/#respondTue, 26 May 2015 11:07:42 +0000http://www.dilmunicouple.com/?p=1814On our way back from Souq Waqif to Shaima flat, we noticed a unique building with nice and different architectural design. We asked Shaima “is this a governmental building or represent any society/community !?” Shaima answered; this is the old Doha fire station, and has been recently transformed into art gallery that will also host ...

]]>On our way back from Souq Waqif to Shaima flat, we noticed a unique building with nice and different architectural design. We asked Shaima “is this a governmental building or represent any society/community !?” Shaima answered; this is the old Doha fire station, and has been recently transformed into art gallery that will also host artist in residence program in an objective to follow Qatar National Vision 2030. Beside our interest in different types of arts, we have been curious to know more about the idea of transforming this building from a civil administration to place for community use, so we decide to visit it the next day.

Next morning, Shaima left early for work and we headed directly to the fire station “Artist in residence”. Shaima also contacted the fire station director “Hala Al Khalifa” as she know her, and informed her that we are visiting them today… Shaima you are really taking good care of us! Hala welcomed us with her nice smile, she was so kind and lovely, she provided an overview about the place and programs that will be hosted, goals and achievements.

The Fire Station runs an Artist in Residence program that focuses on the visual arts, fashion, anime, performance, multimedia, literature and music, and is open to curators in all disciplines. It will strive to initiate and support new approaches in understanding, producing and valuing art; based on openness, innovation and originality. The Fire Station Artist in Residence program hosts 20 artists every year for a 9 month residency that culminates in a group exhibition at the Garage Gallery. Each artist has their own individual studio space, with unlimited access.

We think it’s really an ambitious vision that will enrich the art sector in Qatar.

Then we went to the art gallery to visit the exhibition titled “555”. Early forms of residencies started in 1995, and closed a decade later in 2005 in Doha, and now in 2015 they continue the art in residence program again. The name 555 is also a play on the number 999 which was dialed by residents of Qatar to actually contact the Fire Station.

We continued our tour to tack a look to the other sections of the building which is really impressive. At the end we say good bye to Hala and hope to meet her again. We really wish that one day that such promising projects will be held in Bahrain, specially that there are a lot of local and young talents that need such place and attention.

You can visit the Fire Station website to get more info, or follow them on Instagram

]]>http://www.dilmunicouple.com/from-doha-fire-station-to-art-in-residence/feed/01814Al Zubarah fort .. First UNESCO site in Qatarhttp://www.dilmunicouple.com/al-zubarah-fort-first-unesco-site-in-qatar/
http://www.dilmunicouple.com/al-zubarah-fort-first-unesco-site-in-qatar/#commentsSun, 24 May 2015 08:25:51 +0000http://www.dilmunicouple.com/?p=1796In our third and last day in Qatar, we thought about visiting one of the famous archaeological and the first UNESCO world heritage site in Qatar, which has been listed in 2013. Beside our interest to visit the archeological and historical sites, this site is mainly related to the history of the royal family in ...

]]>In our third and last day in Qatar, we thought about visiting one of the famous archaeological and the first UNESCO world heritage site in Qatar, which has been listed in 2013. Beside our interest to visit the archeological and historical sites, this site is mainly related to the history of the royal family in Bahrain “Al Khalifa”.

Al Zubarah fort is located in the north-west part of Qatar and around 100 km from the capital Doha. Because of Doha’s crowded roads that are being reconstructed for FIFA world cup 2022, it took us around two hours until we reached our destination. Once we got out of Doha we crossed a deserted highway, there were no buildings and in most cases we were the only car on the road. So anytime you plan a trip to the fort make sure to fill your car with petrol and take some water and light snacks with you!

The fort has been renovated and looks somehow new specially from inside. It had been well restored to protect it against the harsh desert conditions. Near the fort there are small cabins; one of them is a temporary museum which hosts some artifacts founded during the excavation. Inside the fort, don’t expect to see much, one courtyard surrounded by several corridors and rooms. Inside each room, there are several interactive screens including some information about the area, stories, conflicts about most famous tribes that settled in Al Zubarah. Unfortunately the rooftops and the towers were closed for maintenance, but as planned in the future the northwest tower will be open and from there a one will be able to look out over the site and the surrounding area.

The fort is built in 1938, under the rule of Shaikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al Thani, The town was first constructed in 1760s, but it came under attack and was destroyed in 1811. A smaller settlement was built on top of the ruins, but this too was destroyed in 1878. Today, the desert sands conceal 500 ruined buildings, long walls and towers, two screening walls and the sister settlement of Qal’at Murair, were the town’s fresh water wells were located. unfortunately we couldn’t see the town due to the excavation work going on the area.

We tried to search for more areas surrounding the fort using our GPS, but what made us really laugh is that the closest area is Sitra which is located in Bahrain and only 40 Km but through the sea. In our way back to Doha we saw different ruins and stopped to capture several photos.

However, If you are willing to visit Al Zubarah, you might would like to contact Qatar Museum who manage Al Zubarah archaeological site, and can arrange a tour to the fort with a guide. you can sign up from here.

]]>http://www.dilmunicouple.com/al-zubarah-fort-first-unesco-site-in-qatar/feed/11796Qatari honey at Bu Saif apiarieshttp://www.dilmunicouple.com/qatari-honey-at-bu-saif-apiaries/
http://www.dilmunicouple.com/qatari-honey-at-bu-saif-apiaries/#commentsTue, 19 May 2015 08:35:50 +0000http://www.dilmunicouple.com/?p=1775When you think of traveling to Qatar, It’s directly comes to your mind to visit the main sites such as Souq Waqif, or modern landmarks such as Museum of Islamic Art, or historical sites such as Al Zubarah fort. But what we didn’t think of or even imagine, that we are going to visit beekeeping ...

]]>When you think of traveling to Qatar, It’s directly comes to your mind to visit the main sites such as Souq Waqif, or modern landmarks such as Museum of Islamic Art, or historical sites such as Al Zubarah fort. But what we didn’t think of or even imagine, that we are going to visit beekeeping farm in Al-Shahaniya area! We didn’t think at all about such place to visit in Qatar without our fabulous friend Shaima.

Shaima proposed the place after visiting Bu Saif café located in the famous Souq Waqif, what is interesting about this café, that they are using the local honey to prepare their sweets and drinks even the Donuts are made with honey instead of sugar it should a healthy Donuts! We have fast look to the the café and what they are providing for customers and headed directly to the farm to know more about beekeeping and apiary setup. The farm is located in Al Shahaniya, which is around 40 Km from capital Doha. Although we lost our way to the farm, but we know how to enjoy this part of adventure, we kept chatting and sharing our being lost stories in different travels.

After about one hour and a half, we finally arrived to the farm where Suresh was waiting for us. Suresh is working as a beekeeper along with Krishna and Satheesh. They are all from Kerala, India. Suresh brought us special white clothing to protect us from the bees. The tour started in theoretical way by explaining to us the steps of apiaries setup, what’s required to take care of the bees, and how to collect the honey. We saw the bees queen, and we know now how to differentiate between males and females, as Suresh said “you can see females are working all the time, but males are lazy setting all day long and their size is bigger” !!

Suresh allowed us to carry out one of the beehive slots after teaching us how to take it out slowly and carefully, it was very nice feeling but scary at the same time with the bee buzz surrounding you!. At the end we thank Suresh and his friends for their nice welcoming, and for answering all of our questions. Also we would like to thanks Khalid Alsuwaidi (Owner of Bu Saif Apiaries) for allowing us to get this unique experience in Qatar. Unfortunately we couldn’t meet the owner, as he was out of the country and didn’t try the products of Bu Saif Apiaries, but absolutely we are going to try the local Qatari honey next time we visit Qatar.

You can take a look to the interesting products of Bu Saif by visiting the Instagram account of Bu Saif Apiaries @bosaifhoney

]]>http://www.dilmunicouple.com/qatari-honey-at-bu-saif-apiaries/feed/21775Traditional Qatari breakfast at Shay Al Shoomoshttp://www.dilmunicouple.com/traditional-qatari-breakfast-at-shay-alshoomos/
http://www.dilmunicouple.com/traditional-qatari-breakfast-at-shay-alshoomos/#respondThu, 14 May 2015 05:20:11 +0000http://www.dilmunicouple.com/?p=1750During our visit to Qatar, our friend Shaima took us to try traditional Qatari breakfast at Shay Al Shoomos cafe. the cafe is located in Souq Waqif, one of the famous attractions in Qatar. The cafe was busy and full of people specially from Gulf countries. We went directly to the kitchen to meet the shop owner, entrepreneur “Shams”. ...

]]>During our visit to Qatar, our friend Shaima took us to try traditional Qatari breakfast at Shay Al Shoomos cafe. the cafe is located in Souq Waqif, one of the famous attractions in Qatar. The cafe was busy and full of people specially from Gulf countries. We went directly to the kitchen to meet the shop owner, entrepreneur “Shams”. It was very small cooking area, one oven that served hundreds of orders, and you can face the oven heat directly when entering the kitchen! Shams dressed in Khaliji style “black Abaya” was working there with full energy, busy preparing all the requested meals. with all of that, she welcomed us nicely, she was very warm with all her feelings. we stayed in the kitchen for a while to see how she is cooking with full passion and love, and that’s why we think the food were amazingly delicious! we asked Shams to pick our breakfast meal!

We sat on one of the tables, while we are waiting the food to be served, Shaima introduced us to Mohammed Al-Sharif, a Qatari friend. she invited him to join us for the breakfast. It was a great chance to meet him and enjoy the time listening to his great travel stories and filmmaking experiences. one of the nice stories about Mohammed, that he went to film a hunting trip in Algeria desert, moreover he experienced the highest bungee jumping in Macau, China .. crazy guy !!

After a while, Shams humbly served the food by her self, various traditional dishes .. Egg with tomato, Blalit, Beans “Luba”, the tea with milk. Although Hussain doesn’t classified food as a main interest, but as he said that day “I really enjoyed the food, it’s really delicious .. and the place is so vivid !”

Shams hospitality was amazing, she cooked the food and served it to us, and finally she didn’t allow us to pay for it!! Aarab hospitality, she considered us as her guests from Bahrain .. Thank you Shams, what a generosity!

We moved to the next shop, which belongs to her as well. she sell home made food products such as spices, cheese, herbs, desserts and pickles.

Shams taught us different lessons .. how to be humble, hospitable.. word could’t describe this wonderful woman! moreover her passion of her work and ambition that led her to all these success.

Your visit to Qatar will not be complete without visiting Shay Al Shoomos cafe !

]]>http://www.dilmunicouple.com/traditional-qatari-breakfast-at-shay-alshoomos/feed/01750Walking around Bahrain | Day 1http://www.dilmunicouple.com/walking-around-bahrain-day-1/
http://www.dilmunicouple.com/walking-around-bahrain-day-1/#respondWed, 18 Mar 2015 14:12:28 +0000http://www.dilmunicouple.com/?p=1716Have you ever wondered how much do you really know about your country! We would never thought that we would have such a rewarding journey in our small island and we were totally wrong! The idea came, Walking around Bahrain in 5 days! we got so excited, it sounds challenging we don’t really know how ...

]]>Have you ever wondered how much do you really know about your country!We would never thought that we would have such a rewarding journey in our small island and we were totally wrong!

The idea came, Walking around Bahrain in 5 days! we got so excited, it sounds challenging we don’t really know how things will go walking in our island that was affected so badly by urban expansion, so we knew we will be walking mostly through roads and residential areas and more over no one did it before, in our time I mean!

We set up the plan and announced our route, we would walk around our country in 5 days, this plan doesn’t have the option of returning home even though we live in a small island! so we will be carrying our tent, camp at the point we reach and continue the next day. We wanted to walk to be able to look for details and discover the hidden things we skip normally when moving by car in our daily life, moreover we would like to visit some places that we didn’t have the chance to visit before.

And so we did, we packed our tent, camping gear, some food, and camera kit. We started our journey by camping at Bilaj Aljzaer, the weather was chilling, cold and I remember that we didn’t take off our jackets and slip in our sleeping bags to keep warm, I woke up on a very beautiful scene that I couldn’t describe, I told Hussain you need to wake up now and see this, the moon look magically hugging the sea sending its white light along the sea surface. Isn’t it a very romantic start of our journey together!

Being in the adventure mood everything felt different, a lot of enthusiasm and excitement we started putting foot next to the other, not really worried about anything but only to reach our next campsite by sunset!

With morning and first day energy we reached our first target destination Al Areen Wildlife Reservation! lines and lines of kinder-garden kids were waiting to enter the park we sat watching them. I just love it all this excitement, curiosity that you see in kids eyes and we must say we enjoyed our tour more just seeing how kids are reacting when seeing different animals!

Since it is really un-common to see citizens walking in Bahrain, since day one we received a lot of invitations from people to take us in their car, a very nice offer that is really hard to resist specially when walking under hot mid day sun.

Going through the deserted road in the southern part of our island, passing by Bahrain international circuit and university of Bahrain!continue and walking more than 20 kilometres we couldn’t reach the Tree of Life on foot, it was too dark with no energy at the end of the day and we had to ask for help, after waiting for 15 minutes, finally one car stopped for us, they were two Jordanian guys who just moved to Bahrain and didn’t know what and where is the Tree of Life! we were leading them through the road and telling them about our last trip to Jordan, our impressions of the people there and also about our trip around Bahrain! they were too nice to offer us their well equipped campsite, we had to say no. Arrived finally to the tree of life and set up our small tent. Family arrived to the campsite with dinner to say hi! That night made us think that no matter what, you will see your family standing by your side even if they think you are wasting your time walking around your country!